Husband of mom-of-four, 44, whose body was found in her submerged SUV in a Florida pond feared she was suffering a breakdown as she wasn't sleeping or eating normally and 'she just wanted to talk about God'

The husband of a missing mom-of-four who was found dead inside her submerged SUV in a Florida pond feared she may have been suffering a mental breakdown, because she 'wasn't herself' and disappeared after 'talking about God'.

Tracey Lynn Rieker, 44, went missing in the early hours of September 30 in Venice, Florida, leaving behind her wallet and phone.

Ten days later on Saturday October 10 around 11.45am her Nissan Xterra vehicle was found in a pond nearby Knight’s Trail with her body inside.

An autopsy was underway Monday. Police said they were treating the death as a traffic homicide and they are investigating the cause of death. 

Her husband Christian Rieker said that his wife recently became very religious, wasn't sleeping or eating normally, and wanted to get rid of their Halloween and Christmas decorations claiming they were linked to paganism. 

'She was having trouble sleeping, wasn’t eating a whole lot and was really focused on her religious research and outreach,' he said in an interview Fox 13 that was filmed prior to her body’s discovery. 

Christian Rieker, the husband of mom-of-four Tracey Lynn Rieker, 44, whose body was found Saturday in her submerged SUV in a Florida pond, said his wife wasn't acting normally in the days leading up to her September 30 disappearance. He said she wasn't sleeping or eat normally and she became obsessed with religion

'She was having trouble sleeping, wasn’t eating a whole lot and was really focused on her religious research and outreach,' he said in an interview Fox 13 that was filmed prior to her body’s discovery

Tracey was last seen at her home in Venice, Florida on September 30th. Her body was found in her SUV submerged in a large pond in the Toscana Isles on Saturday October 10

He said although Tracey didn’t attend a specific church, 'the last six months religion has been a big importance to her'.

'We are looking at churches because she just wants to talk about God and her discoveries and just share the message she has with anyone wanting to listen,' he said.

When asked why she left without her phone, he said he didn't think she intended to leave for long.

'I really think she was going to talk about God. I don’t know if she meant for it to be an extended leave,' he said.

'The day before, totally unlike her, but she did leave to go to Bradenton Beach to do exactly that, talk about God. Even the week prior she was so concerned about COVID she wouldn’t go anywhere. The importance of her message has just freed her of that fear I think,' he said.

'She just talked about religious stuff. The reason that I say she may not be in the right mindset is that she came to think pagan holidays might not be something God would want and worked on removing some of the Halloween and Christmas decorations that we had because they were linked to pagan holidays,' Rieker explained

Venice Police shared this update Monday saying an autopsy was underway

Rieker said it's out of Tracey's character to leave without notice. 

'It’s completely against her character to leave. Anytime she leaves she let's us know how long she’s gonna be. She’ll call and text us a few times in between... Like I said just a couple days prior she wasn’t quite herself,' he said.  

He explained that Tracey had been very excited about a National and Global Day of Prayer on September 26 and she wanted to get rid of Halloween and Christmas decorations saying they were associated with pagan holidays. 

'She hasn’t been sleeping or eating the way that most people would. There was a day of prayer on the 26th I believe that she was supporting and I think that excited and invigorated her message in her mind but it also made it so she’s not thinking as she would normally,' Rieker said.

Rieker said the last thing Tracey talked to him about was her religious research. 

'She just talked about religious stuff. The reason that I say she may not be in the right mindset is that she came to think pagan holidays might not be something God would want and worked on removing some of the Halloween and Christmas decorations that we had because they were linked to pagan holidays,' he explained. 

Rieker said it's out of Tracey's character to leave without notice. 'It’s completely against her character to leave. Anytime she leaves she let's us know how long she’s gonna be. She’ll call and text us a few times in between... Like I said just a couple days prior she wasn’t quite herself,' he said

The couple share four children together

Following the discovery of a body Tracey's family said in a statement: 'The outcome of the investigation is shocking and devastating, and we wish this could have been investigated sooner to bring needed closure for the family. At this time, we are grieving as an extended and cohesive family unit, and request privacy while we work through this'

He hinted she may have dealt with mental issues in the past but preferred not to elaborate on that.

A representative for the family said in a media release that in addition to trouble sleeping, Tracey had been 'fasting for religious purposes.'

Following the discovery of a body Tracey's family said in a statement: 'Our family is grateful for the outpouring of support and donations of both time and resources in the search for Tracey. 

'The outcome of the investigation is shocking and devastating, and we wish this could have been investigated sooner to bring needed closure for the family. At this time, we are grieving as an extended and cohesive family unit, and request privacy while we work through this.'    

The City of Venice said in a news release Monday: 'Investigators will know more about Ms. Rieker's cause of death following the results, as well as a toxicity screening that could take 6 to 8 weeks.